


Merry Christmas

by LtTanyaBoone



Category: Pan Am
Genre: F/M, Future Fic, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-11-12
Updated: 2012-11-12
Packaged: 2017-11-18 14:15:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,178
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/561941
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LtTanyaBoone/pseuds/LtTanyaBoone
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's Henry's first Christmas and Kate's about to become melancholic when she receives a rather unexpected surprise.<b></b></p>
            </blockquote>





	Merry Christmas

**Author's Note:**

> Laura and Joe being married and having Henry was also part of the "The One Left Behind" story, but rest assured that this one takes a different route ;)

**Disclaimers:** Pan Am, the rights to the show and its characters do not belong to me. No money was made by this.  
 **Spoilers:** everything, AU  
 **Pairings:** past Kate/Niko, Joe/Laura

 **A/N:** Link to [Bobby Darin's "Christmas Auld Lang Syne".](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5lR92wAZbaQ)

* * *

Kate took a sip of her wine, staring into the cackling fire as she tried to direct her thoughts into a different direction. Bobby Darin’s voice was drifting from the record player, the tunes of “Christmas Auld Lang Syne” filling the room and causing Kate to sigh softly.

Henry’s excited squeal made her turn around again, a smile starting to form on her lips as she watched Joe sit down on the floor and pull the toddler into his lap. Her father passed him a present and father and son started to unwrap it, the sailor tearing at the paper and waiting until Henry grasped the edge before he pulled at the present, a ripping sound filling the room.

Outside the window, snowflakes were dancing in the darkness of Christmas Eve. Laura came back into the room, the lights of the Christmas Tree catching in her engagement ring as she reached up to brush her hair from her face, a soft flush coloring her cheeks. Kate’s eyes met those of her sister and the two women smiled at each other as Laura went over to her sister.

“Hey.” she softly said and Kate took another sip of her drink.

“Seems like this wasn’t too bad.” the redhead muttered as their father gave a hearty laugh when his first grandchild tried to eat the wrapping.

“Laura?” Joe called to her, and the younger Cameron went over to him, picking up her son and showering his face with kisses. It was Henry’s first Christmas and they wanted to make it special, especially because no one knew how long Joe would be able to stay around this time. The last time the Navy had told him he had three months to himself before he was due to ship out again, and him and Laura had planned accordingly for a wedding, only for the Vietnam War to heat up and Joe having to return to his submarine after merely two weeks. He had missed everything of the pregnancy, even his son’s birth. Kate had picked him up when he had returned three days ago and been around when he had met his son for the first time. All the anxiety that Laura had felt had vanished in that moment when the man had grinned at the little boy and picked him up, kissing his chubby cheeks before he stared at him, completely mesmerized.

“It’s wonderful, M-” Joe stopped himself as he held up the outfit that had been a present from Kate. “Kate.” he corrected himself at her warning look.

“I hope it still fits.” the older Cameron sister tilted her head slightly. It seemed like her nephew grew every time she saw him, and it had been some time ago that she had picked up his present.

“I’m sure it will.” Laura nodded, shifting Henry’s weight on her hip. “Can you say “Thank you Auntie Kate”?” she asked the boy, who blew spit bubbles at her.

“We’ll practice for next year.” Joe laughed, lifting Henry out of his mother’s arms and tossing the boy in the air.

“He should be in bed already.” Judith remarked as she stood to pour herself a drink.

“Mother.” Kate warned her as Laura shook her head.

“It’s okay, she’s right, it’s past his bedtime.” the blonde woman admitted. “But it’s Christmas, and he doesn’t seem tired at all.”

“He kinda crashes hard when that happens.” Joe remarked, sending his son flying again before he caught him, the baby squealing in delight.

“You do realize that he already had dinner, do you?” Judith asked, raising an eyebrow at her younger daughter’s fiancé. Joe paused, eyeing his son warily.

“Mother, please.” Laura softly said, running her hand down Joe’s back as he held Henry at arm’s length.

“You gonna throw up on me?” he asked the boy. Henry kicked his legs and tried to fit his fist into his mouth, making Laura roll her eyes. Kate passed her the burp cloth that was still on her shoulder from when she had held Henry before.

“Relax, darling.” the girl’s father remarked in the direction of his wife when she handed him a glass of whiskey. “They know what they’re doin’.”

“Oh, I doubt that.” the older woman snorted, causing Kate to sigh again. Her mother didn’t make it a secret out of the fact that she was not happy with the path Laura’s life had taken the past two years. Kate wasn’t sure if she agreed with every decision Laura had made, either, but her sister seemed happy, and in her mind, that was what counted. If Joe was making her happy in the days or weeks they had with each other and Laura was able to deal with the long time in between seeing him, then who was she to argue?

“Gesundheit.” Laura said when Henry sneezed, the boy looking slightly startled.

“I’ll go.” their father offered when the doorbell rang. Since it was Christmas, Maria had the day off to spend it with her family, one of the few kind-hearted gestures that their mother allowed the employees. That, and Kate and Laura had argued that it would hardly be appropriate to have a Black maid around when Joe was visiting. Kate watched her father leave the room, wondering if anyone would notice if she slipped out for a few minutes. She needed a break from the picture of happiness her sister and future brother-in-law were.

Truth be told, ever since Niko had left to go back to Yugoslavia four years ago, Christmas left her melancholic and downright sad. She couldn’t help but think about the plans they had made and how everything had been ruined, not just by his government, but by her own interfering as well. Now he’d be lucky if he was still alive this Christmas. But Richard hadn’t said anything to her about Niko being in more danger than usual, though keeping tabs on him had proven to be difficult. He liked to change the subject every time she brought up the Yugoslavian. Then again, Kate could hardly blame him, she was pretty sure that any information on Niko and his life was well above her security clearance.

She needed a change, Kate mused, reaching up to run a hand through her hair. Richard had repeated the offer that she could become a full agent, and Kate had made up her mind to leave Pan Am in January. She only had two more years left and she was growing tired of her job. Not of seeing new and exciting places, that part was still amazing. But with Laura and Colette gone, the redhead had found that she didn’t enjoy her work as much, and there were days when smiling became an immense effort to her, when she just wanted to call it quits. Still, she was sure that she was going to miss Pan Am a lot when she started at Langley.

“Kate?” her father’s voice cut through her thoughts. Kate raised her eyebrows in question when she found him standing in the doorway. “You got a visitor.” he told her and Kate frowned in confusion as she started walking over to him. Who on earth did she know that had the address for her parents and would actually show up on Christmas Eve to talk to her, especially without calling ahead? She just hoped that Richard hadn’t decided to drop by, she still remembered that time when he’d come knocking on her door in the middle of the night after getting shot.

“Who is-” she started, the rest of the sentence catching in her throat when a man entered the living room, leaning heavily on a cane. Kate reached up to cover her mouth with a shaking hand as Niko took off his hat, the soft layer of snow thawing quickly in the warmth of the room. Kate shook her head in disbelieve and then her body started moving on its own. She quickly crossed the remaining distance and threw herself at him, wrapping her arms around him as her body started shaking with sobs. Niko took a staggering step backwards. The cane clattered to the floor loudly and Kate felt him wrap his arms around her as she clutched at his back, crying so hard she could hardly breathe.

“Merry Christmas, Kate.” Niko whispered into her ear and pressed a kiss to her temple.

“What are you doing here?” Kate asked breathlessly when he let her go and she took a step back, unable to stop touching him. She reached up and carefully traced the lines on his face. He had aged since she had last seen him, his dark hair was peppered with gray, but his eyes still sparkled like they used to when he looked at her. “I thought you were…” she trailed off with a sharp shake of her head.

“Your… friends, they got me out.” he told her, reaching out and drawing her back into an embrace. Kate hid her face in his broad chest, letting his presence wash over her as she closed her eyes. She felt him touch her hair and back, squeeze her shoulders and trace down her waist. He smelled like winter, like snow and pine trees, and the lingering note of his cologne she had always loved, the strong smell washed out by the day, leaving only a trace. She inhaled greedily, clutching the lapels of his coat and shivering when cold water hit the skin of her hands.

Again she stepped back, this time reaching up to brush away the tears on her face. Her father held out Niko’s cane and the man accepted it with a grateful smile, making Kate frown and a stab of pain and regret fill her when Niko took a step towards her, limping. She wanted to know what had happened to him, needed to know who had done this and why he was here now, not just in the US but here, at her parents’ house…

The thought make her shake her head quickly to clear some of the confusion away.

“Niko, this, uh, this is my sister Laura, her fiancé Joe, their son Henry, my mother Judith, and my father Alfred. This is Niko Lonza.” Kate introduced them, exchanging a look with her sister as she wiped the tears away quickly. Laura’s eyes were comically wide and her jaw had dropped in surprise, though she caught herself, shaking Niko’s hand.

“I remember you.” Niko said, making Laura blush slightly. “Hello, little man.” he muttered, bending down slightly to look into Henry’s face as he carefully shook the boy’s hand as Joe held the boy.

“Nice to meet you.” Joe greeted him politely.

“Yes, very nice. Though I am afraid we are rather unprepared-”

“Mother!” Laura let out a hiss, glaring at Judith, who had risen from her chair. Kate couldn’t help but laugh at the look on her mother’s face. “I’ll get you something to eat, Mister Lonza.” she offered and Niko smiled at her gratefully.

“Niko, please.” he called after her as Laura disappeared into the kitchen, Judith giving a tight lipped smile before she went after her daughter.

“I am sorry for interrupting your celebrations.” Niko apologized, looking sheepishly down at Kate. She quickly shook her head, swallowing thickly.

“Nonsense, you’re not interrupting anything.” she assured him, unable to stop smiling.

“You’re kinda evening the playing field, actually.” Joe chimed in, bouncing Henry a little when the boy gave a dissatisfied sound. “The sisters been ganging up on me all night.” he added with a nod in Kate’s direction. She raised her eyebrow at her brother-in-law before reaching out to take Niko’s coat. She couldn’t resist checking his pockets when she hung it up in the hallway, telling herself it was more of a safety measure than anything else. A loaded gun in her parents’ house would raise a few eyebrows, never mind be a safety hazard with the child around…

To Kate’s surprise, she found an envelope in the inside pocket. She pulled it out, furrowing her brows when she saw her name scribbled on it in Richard’s handwriting. Kate cast a look around before opening it and pulling out a card that showed a huge Christmas gift sitting under a tree. When she opened it, she couldn’t help shake her head.

“Merry Christmas Kate,” Richard had scrawled on the inside. Kate shook her head as the tears welled up in her eyes. She traced the letters carefully, whispering a thank you before she put the card back again, quickly wiping away the tears on her face before she went back to the living room where Henry was poking at Niko’s face as the man held him carefully, laughing with the boy.

Maybe Christmas wasn’t so bad after all.

 _fin._


End file.
